Image capturing apparatus and control program product with speed detection features

ABSTRACT

A mobile terminal having a camera function includes a camera unit for capturing an image of a subject, and an image-capture control calculation unit that controls an image-capturing operation performed by the camera unit and that also calculates a movement speed of the subject that is being captured by the camera unit. Then, when the camera unit is performing continuous image capture, the image-capture control calculation unit dynamically changes and controls an image-capture time interval at the time of continuous image capture in accordance with a movement speed of the subject.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit of the earlier filing date ofU.S. provisional application 61/509,140, filed on Jul. 19, 2011, theentire contents of which being incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to an image capturing apparatus thatcaptures, for example, a subject that is in motion or the like, and toan image-capture control program product for use in capturing am imageof a subject by using the image capturing apparatus.

BACKGROUND ART

For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2002-307876 (PTL 1) discloses an ID card creation system in which a faceimage in which the eyes are not closed is selected from a plurality offace images that are obtained by continuously capturing the face of aperson whose image is to be photographed, and is thus capable ofcreating an ID card with an optimum face image in which the eyes are notclosed. The ID card creation system described in this PTL 1 isconfigured to include image-capturing means, a recording medium, acontrol device, and card creation means. The image-capturing meanscontinuously captures an image of the upper part of the body includingthe face of the subject for each relevant subject so as to obtain aplurality of pieces of face image information. The recording mediumstores the plurality of pieces of face image information of the relevantsubjects, which are obtained by the image-capturing means. The controldevice selects, for each subject, the face image with the mostsatisfactory eyes open state from among the plurality of pieces of faceimage data read from the recording medium. The card creation meanscreates an employee certificate on the basis of the face image dataselected by the control device.

Furthermore, International Publication 08/087,914 Pamphlet (PTL 2)discloses an image capturing apparatus that is capable of easilysearching for a main image representing continuously captured imagesfrom among the plurality of continuously captured images obtained byperforming continuous image capture. This image capturing apparatus isconfigured to include continuous image-capturing means, recording means,and main image selection means. The continuous image-capturing meanscontinuously captures a plurality of images at a predetermined timeinterval that is determined by continuous image capture conditions thatare preset by an image-capturing person. The recording means recordsimage data corresponding to a plurality of captured images that arecaptured by the continuous image-capturing means as one image file on arecording medium. The main image selection means selects one main imagefrom among the plurality of captured images recorded as one image fileon a recording medium. Furthermore, the image capturing apparatusdisclosed in PTL 2 is configured to be able to detect the amount ofmotion of a subject at the time of image capture and select, as a mainimage, the captured image with the smallest detected amount of motion ofthe subject. Furthermore, the image capturing apparatus disclosed in PTL2 is configured in such a manner that whether or not a subject hashis/her eyes closed is detected by recognizing the face of the subjectwhen image capture is performed, and a captured image in which the eyesare closed is prohibited from being selected as a main image.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

[PTL 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2002-307876 (FIG. 1)

[PTL 2] International Publication 08/087,914 Pamphlet (FIG. 2)

SUMMARY OF DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

By the way, in the case of the technology disclosed in theabove-mentioned Patent Literature, a predetermined number of images arecaptured, and a desired image is selected from among the plurality ofimages.

However, in a case where, for example, an image of a subject that movesat a high speed or whose movement speed changes is to be captured, evenif a plurality of images are captured by continuous image capture asdescribed in the above-mentioned Patent Literature, there can occur acase in which there is no one satisfactory image among the plurality ofimages.

Furthermore, in the case of the technology disclosed in theabove-mentioned Patent Literature, for example, an image in which a faceimage in which the eyes are opened has been photographed among faceimages of a person is selected as an optimum image from among aplurality of images obtained by continuous image capture. That is, inthe case of the technology of the related art, it is possible to dealwith only the data of the face image of a person. As a consequence, itis not possible to deal with many different kinds of subjects other thana person, and it is only possible to select an image in an eyes openstate. In other words, captured images desired by a user are of manydifferent kinds, and it is not the case that, for example, the userdesires only the image capture of images in an eyes open state.

On the basis of these observations, the present inventors recognized thenecessity of being able to even deal with a case in which, for example,a subject is moving, furthermore of being able to deal with a case inwhich not only a person is used as a subject, but also many otherdifferent kinds of subjects are to be photographed, and in addition, ofbeing able to deal with many different kinds of captured images desiredby the user.

Then, an image capturing apparatus according to an embodiment includesan image-capturing unit for capturing an image of a subject, animage-capture control unit that controls an image-capturing operation inthe image-capturing unit, and a speed detection unit (or device) thatdetects the movement speed of the subject whose image is being capturedby the image-capturing unit. Then, when continuous image capture isbeing performed by the image-capturing unit, the image-capture controlunit dynamically changes and controls the image-capture time interval atthe time of continuous image capture in accordance with the movementspeed of the subject, the movement speed being detected by the speeddetection unit.

Furthermore, an image capturing apparatus according to an embodimentfurther includes a storage unit that stores a plurality of capturedimages that are continuously captured by the image-capturing unit; animage analysis unit that analyzes the plurality of captured imagesstored in the storage unit by using a predetermined analysis algorithm;and an image selection unit that selects at least one captured imagefrom among the plurality of captured images stored in the storage uniton the basis of analysis information produced by the image analysisunit.

A non-transitory image-capture control computer program productaccording to an embodiment causes a computer of an image capturingapparatus to operate as an image-capture control unit that controls animage-capturing operation of an image-capturing unit so as to cause therelevant image-capturing unit to capture an image of a subject, and aspeed detection unit that detects a movement speed of the subject thatis being captured by the image-capturing unit. Then, when theimage-capturing unit is performing continuous image capture, theimage-capture control unit dynamically changes and controls animage-capture time interval at the time of the continuous image capturein accordance with the movement speed of the subject, the movement speedbeing detected by the speed detection unit.

Furthermore, an image-capture control program according to an embodimentcauses the computer of the image capturing apparatus to operate as astorage control unit that causes a storage unit to store a plurality ofcaptured images that have been captured by the image-capturing unit, animage analysis unit that analyzes the plurality of captured imagesstored in the storage unit by using a predetermined analysis algorithm,and an image selection unit that selects at least one captured imagefrom among the plurality of captured images stored in the storage uniton the basis of analysis information produced by the image analysisunit.

In an image-capture control method according to an embodiment, animage-capture control unit controls an image-capturing operation of animage-capturing unit so as to cause the relevant image-capturing unit tocapture an image of a subject, a speed detection unit detects a movementspeed of the subject that is being captured by the image-capturing unit,and when the image-capturing unit is performing continuous imagecapture, the image-capture control unit dynamically changes and controlsan image-capture time interval at the time of the continuous imagecapture in accordance with the movement speed of the subject, themovement speed being detected by the speed detection unit.

Furthermore, in an image-capture control method according to anembodiment, a storage control unit causes a storage unit to store aplurality of captured images that have been captured by theimage-capturing unit, an image analysis unit analyzes the plurality ofcaptured images stored in the storage unit by using a predeterminedanalysis algorithm, and an image selection unit selects at least onecaptured image from among the plurality of captured images stored in thestorage unit on the basis of analysis information produced by the imageanalysis unit.

A non-transitory recording medium according to an embodiment hasrecorded thereon an image-capture control program that causes a computerof an image capturing apparatus to operate as an image-capture controlunit that controls an image-capturing operation of an image-capturingunit so as to cause the relevant image-capturing unit to capture animage of a subject, and a speed detection unit that detects a movementspeed of the subject that is being captured by the image-capturing unit.Then, when the image-capturing unit is performing continuous imagecapture, the image-capture control unit based on the execution of theimage-capture control program recorded on the relevant recording mediumdynamically changes and controls an image-capture time interval at thetime of the continuous image capture in accordance with the movementspeed of the subject, the movement speed being detected by the speeddetection unit.

An image-capture control program recorded on a recording mediumaccording to an embodiment causes the computer of the image capturingapparatus to operate as a storage control unit that causes a storageunit to store a plurality of captured images that have been captured bythe image-capturing unit, an image analysis unit that analyzes theplurality of captured images stored in the storage unit by using apredetermined analysis algorithm, and an image selection unit thatselects at least one captured image from among the plurality of capturedimages stored in the storage unit on the basis of analysis informationproduced by the image analysis unit.

That is, according to an embodiment, when the image-capturing unit isperforming continuous image capture, by dynamically changing andcontrolling an image-capture time interval at the time of the relevantcontinuous image capture in accordance with the movement speed of thesubject of the image that is being continuously captured, it is possibleto appropriately deal with even a case in which the subject is moving.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment, a plurality of captured imagesthat are continuously captured and stored by the image-capturing unitare analyzed using a predetermined analysis algorithm, and at least onecaptured image is selected from among the continuously captured imageson the basis of the analysis result. As a consequence, for example, itbecomes possible to select, for example, various images that seem to bepreferable by the user.

As a result, according to an embodiment, it becomes possible to dealwith even a case in which, for example, a subject is moving.Furthermore, according to an embodiment, it becomes possible to dealwith not only a case in which a person is used as a subject, but alsoother various subjects. In addition, it becomes possible to deal withmany different kinds of captured images that are desired by the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic example of theinternal overall configuration of a mobile terminal of the presentembodiment, the mobile terminal having a camera function.

FIG. 2 is a view for use in an illustration of an example of thecalculation of a subject movement distance, which is based on a distancefrom a subject to a camera and an angle formed between subject positionsbefore and after movement.

FIG. 3 is a view for use in an illustration of outline of an analysisprocess for a relevant image in a case where the image to be analyzed isan image of a dog.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a table indicating the correspondencebetween areas occupied by each part in an image frame and scores givento each of the parts.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of continuously captured images when themobile terminal according to the present embodiment is in a continuousimage capture mode for selecting a best image.

FIG. 6 is a view for use in a schematic illustration of, for example, animage of (as) in FIG. 5 among the continuously captured images of FIG. 5and each part obtained by analyzing the image.

FIG. 7 is a view for use in a schematic illustration of, for example, animage of (ae) in FIG. 5 among the continuously captured images of FIG. 5and each part obtained by analyzing the image.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a table in which weighting ofmultiplying by N times (two times) the score of a basic table isperformed with respect to items that are input in advance and that matchthe analysis result of the image.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the overall flow from when animage-capture control program of the present embodiment is executeduntil and continuous image capture is performed in the continuous imagecapture mode for selecting a best image until a best image is selectedfrom among the relevant continuously captured images.

FIG. 10 is a detailed flowchart of calculating the movement distance andthe movement speed in step S3 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a detailed flowchart of an image-capture intervaldetermination process in step S4 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 12 is a detailed flowchart of a selection process of a best imagein step S8 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 13 is a detailed flowchart of an analysis process of an image thatis input in advance.

FIG. 14 is a detailed flowchart of image analysis processes in step S31of FIG. 12 and in step S41 of FIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a detailed flowchart of a part extraction process in step S51of FIG. 14.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

A description will be given below, with reference to the drawings, of anembodiment of an image capturing apparatus as an embodiment, animage-capture control program product, an image-capture control method,and a recording medium on which the image-capture control program hasbeen recorded. In the present embodiment, as an example of the imagecapturing apparatus, a mobile terminal having a camera function isgiven.

[Outline]

The mobile terminal of the present embodiment, though its details willbe described later, has functions of detecting, when, for example, asubject that moves at a high speed or whose movement speed varies is tobe continuously captured, the movement speed of the subject and thechange in the movement speed, and dynamically controlling theimage-capture time interval, the number of continuously captured images,and the like at the time of continuous image capture on the basis of themovement speed and the change in the movement speed. As a result, in themobile terminal of the present embodiment, for example, when a subjectthat moves at a high speed or whose movement speed changes iscontinuously captured, the probability that a satisfactory image isobtained among the plurality of images by the continuous image captureis increased. Dynamic image-capture control based on the movement speedand the variation thereof may include, for example, dynamic control of ashutter speed (exposure time) and dynamic control of an aperture.

Furthermore, the mobile terminal of the present embodiment has functionsof, for example, checking in advance preferences and favorites of a userby analyzing an image that is input as a best image by the userhimself/herself, and selecting images in line with the preferences ororientations of the user when a desired image is to be selected fromamong the plurality of images by the continuous image capture. As aresult, the mobile terminal of the present embodiment is allowed toselect not only a satisfactory face image from among a plurality ofimages by continuous image capture, but also a satisfactory subjectimage from among a plurality of images in which a subject other than aperson is continuously image-captured, and in addition, a captured imagethat seems to be preferable by the user.

The mobile terminal of the present embodiment is configured to be ableto realize the image capture dynamic control and image selectionprocesses by using an algorithm that shows the following outline.

The algorithm of the present embodiment is broadly classified into fourprocesses, namely, “subject detection and speed detection processes”, an“image-capture time interval setting determination process”, a “subjectimage part extraction process”, and a “best image selection process”.

Here, in the present embodiment, the subject detection and speeddetection processes include a movement distance calculation process of asubject (object to be image captured), and a speed calculation processfor calculating the movement speed of the relevant subject on the basisof the subject movement distance calculated by the relevant movementdistance calculation process.

The image-capture time interval determination process is a process fordetermining an image-capture time interval at the time of the continuousimage capture in accordance with the movement speed calculated by thesubject detection and speed detection processes.

Furthermore, the subject image part extraction process includes, forexample, a process for analyzing an image that is input in advance by auser, a process for analyzing the individual continuously capturedimages, a process for extracting each part forming the subject in therelevant image by those analyses, and a process for calculating theratio at which a part occupies in the subject, each of the relevantextracted parts being one of the parts of the subject.

Furthermore, the best image selection process is a process for selectingan image that is determined to be best or better from among the capturedimages by the continuous image capture by referring to an analysisinformation table generated on the basis of the analysis of the imagethat is input in advance on the basis of the analysis result of theimages captured by the continuous image capture.

The details of these algorithms and processes will be described later.

[Configuration of Mobile Terminal]

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic example of the internal overallconfiguration of a mobile terminal of the present embodiment. Theportable terminal of the present embodiment may be any one of, forexample, a highly functional mobile phone terminal having a camerafunction, a tablet terminal, and a digital camera terminal having acommunication function.

In FIG. 1, a communication unit 1 includes a communication unit forperforming communication through a communication antenna, a portabletelephone network, or a public wireless communication network.

An operation unit 3 is constituted by hard keys provided on the housingof the mobile terminal of the present embodiment, a peripheral circuitthereof, a touch panel provided on, for example, the entire surface ofthe display, and the like. Furthermore, in the case of the presentembodiment, the operation unit 3 includes a shutter button for imagecapture in the camera unit 14. The shutter button is constituted by ahard key that can discriminate between a so-called half pressed stateand a so-called fully pressed state. However, the shutter button may berealized as a soft key through the touch panel if it can detect a statethat accords with the half pressed state and the fully pressed state.

A display unit 4 includes a display panel formed from, for example, aliquid-crystal panel or an organic EL panel, and a video signalprocessing circuit for displaying images and the like on the displaypanel. In the mobile terminal of the present embodiment, in a casewhere, for example, image capture is being performed by the camera unit14, a preview image, an image after image capture, and the like aredisplayed on the relevant display panel. In a case where the operationunit 3 includes a touch panel, the relevant touch panel is set at a sizethat covers substantially the entire surface of the display panel.

An audio input/output unit 5 includes, for example, a speaker, amicrophone, and a circuit for processing an audio signal that is inputtherefrom or output thereto. The speaker is used for, for example, musicreproduction, call reception sound output, and ring alert output. Themicrophone is used to collect external sound, collect transmitted phoneconversation, and others.

An external input/output terminal unit 6 is constituted by a cableconnection connector for performing, for example, data communicationthrough a cable, an interface circuit for external data communication, acharging terminal for charging an internal battery through a power cableor the like, and a charging interface circuit therefor, and the like.The mobile terminal of the present embodiment is allowed to obtain, froman external device connected to the relevant external input/outputterminal unit 6, various programs and digital, such as an image-capturecontrol program according to the present embodiment, image data that isseparately captured, and image data that is input in advance by theuser.

An external memory slot 7 is constituted by a memory loading/unloadingunit to and from which an external memory 8 formed from a semiconductorstorage medium, or the like is loaded/unloaded, an interface circuit fortransmitting and receiving data, programs, and the like to and from anexternal memory loaded into the relevant memory loading/unloading unit.The external memory 8 may also be a recording medium on which theimage-capture control program of the embodiment has been recorded. Inthis case, it is possible for the mobile terminal of the embodiment toobtain an image-capture control program from the relevant externalmemory 8.

A storage unit 10 is constituted by a built-in memory provided insidethis terminal, and a removable card-shaped memory. Examples of theremovable card-shaped memory include a card in which so-called SIM(Subscriber Identity Module) information or the like is stored. Thebuilt-in memory includes a ROM and a RAM. The ROM is a rewritable ROM.The relevant ROM has stored therein an OS (Operating System), a controlprogram for the control unit 2 (to be described later) to control thewhole of the relevant mobile terminal, and each unit thereof, animage-capture control program of the present embodiment, which isexecuted by an image-capture control calculation unit 13 and an imageanalysis/selection unit 12 (to be described later), additionally,various types of initialized values, various types of data, and thelike. The RAM serves as a work area and a buffer area to store data asdesired when the control unit 2, the image-capture control calculationunit 13, and the image analysis/selection unit 12 perform various dataprocessing.

The control unit 2, which is formed of a main CPU (center processingunit), controls each unit, such as the communication unit 1, the displayunit 4, the audio input/output unit 5, the external input/outputterminal unit 6, the external memory slot 7, the image-capture controlcalculation unit 13, and the image analysis/selection unit 12, andperforms various arithmetic operations. The relevant control unit 2executes the control program and the like stored in the storage unit 10.The execution of the image-capture control program of the presentembodiment may be carried out by the control unit 2.

The mobile terminal of the present embodiment, though its illustrationis omitted in FIG. 1, of course, includes components provided in atypical mobile terminal, such as a clock unit for measuring a timeperiod and time, a battery for supplying power to each unit, a powermanagement IC for controlling power, a digital broadcast receivingmodule for receiving a digital television broadcast and a digital radiobroadcast, for example, a non-contact communication module forperforming non-contact communication, which is used for so-called RFID(Radio Frequency-Identification), a non-contact IC card, and the like, aGPS module for obtaining the latitude and the longitude of the currentposition of its own terminal by using a GPS signal from a GPS (GlobalPositioning System) geodetic satellite, short-distance wirelesscommunication units of a wireless LAN, Bluetooth (registered trademark),or the like, various sensor units, such as, for example, an inclinationsensor, an acceleration sensor, a direction sensor, a temperaturesensor, a humidity sensor, and an illumination sensor.

The camera unit 14 includes an image-capturing element for capturing astill image and a moving image, an optical system for forming a subjectimage in the image-capturing element, an auto-focus mechanism fordriving lenses of the optical system so as to perform automaticfocusing, an auto-iris mechanism for driving the aperture of the opticalsystem so as to perform automatic aperture adjustment, a shutter speedadjustment mechanism for adjusting a shutter speed by means of amechanical, electronic, or other type, a camera-shake correctionmechanism for correcting so-called camera shake, and a driving circuitfor driving those mechanisms.

A light-emitting unit 15 includes a lighting unit formed of an LED foremitting image-capturing illumination light (for example, strobe light)for illuminating a subject at the time of image capture by the cameraunit 14 or image-capturing auxiliary light for obtaining necessarybrightness for the purpose of auto-focus, and a light-emission drivingcircuit for driving the lighting unit to emit light.

The image-capture control calculation unit 13 is configured to includean image pickup signal processing unit 31, a driving control unit 36, asubject detection unit 32, a movement distance calculation unit 33, aspeed calculation unit 34, and an image-capture interval determinationunit 35, and causes those units to operate under the control of thecontrol unit 2.

The image pickup signal processing unit 31 generates image data from theimage pickup signal output by the image-capturing element of the cameraunit 14, sends the image data to the control unit 2 as necessary, andsends the image data to the storage unit 10 as necessary, whereby theimage data is stored.

The driving control unit 36 controls the driving circuit for each of theabove-mentioned mechanisms of the camera unit 14, thereby causing therelevant camera unit 14 to perform the image-capturing operation of theimage-capturing element, the automatic focusing operation of theauto-focus mechanism, the automatic aperture adjustment operation of theauto-iris mechanism, the shutter speed adjustment operation of theshutter speed adjustment mechanism, the camera-shake correctionoperation of the camera-shake correction mechanism, and the like.Furthermore, the driving control unit 35 controls the light-emissiondriving circuit of the light-emitting unit 15, thereby causing therelevant light-emitting unit 15 to perform the light emission operationof the image-capturing illumination light and the light emissionoperation of the image-capturing auxiliary light.

Various algorithms are known as an auto-focus control algorithm when theautomatic focusing is to be performed, an aperture control algorithm atthe time of the automatic aperture adjustment, a shutter speed controlalgorithm at the time of the automatic shutter speed adjustment, an autowhite-balance control algorithm at the time of the white-balancesetting, a camera-shake correction control algorithm at the time ofcamera-shake correction, or the like. The image-capture controlcalculation unit 13 can use any one of the algorithms.

In the case of the present embodiment, for the auto-focus controlalgorithm, as an example, a control algorithm that brings the focus ofthe optical system to a direction in which the contrast of the imageportion in a predetermined focus area within the image captured by thecamera unit 14 is high. The relevant predetermined focus area, as anexample, is set as a substantially central area of the screen, an areathat is set as desired by the user through the operation unit 3, asubject area extracted by detection of a contour (edge) in the image, asubject area that is detected by recognizing various predeterminedsubject patterns, such as, for example, the face of a person or theshape of an animal, from within the image.

Furthermore, for the aperture control algorithm and the shutter speedcontrol algorithm, as an example, a control algorithm that optimizes theaperture value and the shutter speed on the basis of the luminanceinformation of the captured image of the camera unit 14 is used.

For the white-balance control algorithm, as an example, a controlalgorithm is used which optimizes white balance by judging the colortemperature of the light source on the basis of the captured image ofthe camera unit 14 or on the basis of the information on the lightsource that is set by the user or the information on the colortemperature.

As the camera-shake correction control algorithm, a control algorithm isused which detects, for example, the deflection direction, thedeflection, the deflection speed, the deflection acceleration, and thelike of the mobile terminal of the present embodiment, which causes thelenses or the image-capturing elements of the optical system to be movedin a direction that cancels those deflections, or that changes the areaof reading from the image-capturing element, or the like.

Of course, the above-mentioned control algorithms are only examples, andthe present invention is not limited to these examples. In the presentembodiment, the automatic focusing operation, the automatic apertureadjustment operation, the automatic shutter speed setting operation, theauto white-balance setting operation, and the like based on thoserespective control algorithms will be represented collectively as an“image-capture control value setting operation”.

When the operation mode of the mobile terminal of the present embodimentis switched to an image-capture mode, the image-capture controlcalculation unit 13 that includes the above-mentioned individualcomponents and can execute the individual control algorithms causes thecamera unit 14 to be started up by the driving control unit 36 so as toenter a state in which image capture is possible.

At this time, an image pickup signal is output at a predetermined framerate from the camera unit 14, and the image pickup signal is sent to theimage pickup signal processing unit 31. The relevant image pickup signalprocessing unit 31 generates moving image data from the image pickupsignal at the frame rate.

The relevant moving image data is sent to the display unit 4 and isdisplayed on the display screen under the control of the control unit 2.That is, at this time, on the display screen, a preview video before theshutter button is pressed is displayed.

Furthermore, in the relevant image-capture mode, when the shutter buttonis placed in a half pressed state, a signal to that effect is sent tothe image-capture control calculation unit 13 from the control unit 2.

When the half pressed signal of the shutter button is received, on thebasis of the image pickup signal from the camera unit 14, theimage-capture control calculation unit 13 causes an automatic focusingoperation based on the auto-focus control algorithm to be started.Furthermore, the image-capture control calculation unit 13 at this timeobtains in advance image-capture control values, such as an aperturevalue, a shutter speed value, a white-balance value, and the like, whenthe shutter button is fully pressed and image capture is performed at alater time, and furthermore obtains in advance a light-emission controlvalue of the light-emitting unit 15 as necessary.

Then, when the shutter button is fully pressed, the signal to thateffect is sent to the image-capture control calculation unit 13 from thecontrol unit 2.

When the fully pressed signal of the relevant shutter button isreceived, the image-capture control calculation unit 13 controls thedriving control unit 36 so as to drive the camera unit 14, so that imagecapture using the shutter speed, the aperture value, and the like isperformed.

Here, in the present embodiment, for the image-capture mode, at least astill image-capture mode and a moving image-capture mode have beenprepared, and in addition, for the still image-capture mode, at least anormal image-capture mode, a continuous image capture mode, and acontinuous image capture mode for selecting a best image have beenprepared.

These image-capture modes are examples, and additionally, variousimage-capture modes may also be prepared.

The still image-capture mode is a mode for capturing a so-called stillimage, and the moving image-capture mode is a mode for capturing aso-called moving image.

The normal image-capture mode among the still image-capture modes is amode in which when the shutter button is in a half pressed state,image-capture control values, such as the in-focus position, theaperture value, the shutter speed value, and the white-balance value inthe above-mentioned image-capture control value setting operation, areset, and when the shutter button is placed in a fully pressed state,image capture of one image based on the set image-capture control valuesis performed and the captured image is stored.

The continuous image capture mode among the still image-capture modes isa mode in which when the shutter button is in a half pressed state, theindividual image-capture control values are set by the above-mentionedimage-capture control value setting operation, continuous image captureis performed only while, after the shutter button is placed in a fullypressed state, the fully pressed state is continued, the continuousimage capture is stopped when the shutter button is made open, and thoseindividual continuously captured images are stored.

The image-capture time interval of individual continuously photographimages in the relevant continuous image-capture mode, that is, the timeinterval from when one still image is captured until the next one stillimage is captured in continuous image capture, is set as, for example, afixed time interval that has been preset as desired by the user or as afixed time interval that has been initialized in advance in the mobileterminal. Furthermore, image-capture control values when image captureof each still image is to be performed at the time of the relevantcontinuous image capture may be set as, for example, image-capturecontrol values that are set when the shutter button is in a half pressedstate, or in each of intervals between image captures performed bycontinuous image capture (for example, a period in which image captureis not performed), the image-capture control values may be set.

The continuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image among thestill image-capture modes is a mode in which, when the shutter button isin a half pressed state, the individual image-capture control values areset by the above-mentioned image-capture control value setting operationand also continuous image capture is performed, the individual capturedimages by the continuous image capture are temporarily stored in amemory, and, when, after that, the shutter button is placed in a fullypressed state and the image capture is completed, the continuouslycaptured images stored in the temporary storage are stored in anon-volatile memory.

When the shutter button is placed in a fully pressed state, all thecontinuously captured images that are temporarily stored in the memoryat the time of the half pressed state may be stored in a non-volatilememory, and continuously captured images within a certain time periodrange may be stored therein when the shutter button is placed in thefully pressed state. It is preferable that the certain time period rangeis a time range before a time period, which includes at least the fullypressed point in time, with respect to the point in time at which thefully pressed state is reached. However, of course, a time rangecontaining both times before and after the fully pressed point in time,that is, the combination of before and after the fully pressed point intime, may be set as a certain time period range. Furthermore, thetemporary memory and the non-volatile memory may be provided in thestorage unit 10 and, for example, only the temporary memory may beprovided in the image-capture control calculation unit 13. Furthermore,the image-capture control values at the time of the continuous imagecapture in the relevant continuous image-capture mode for selecting abest image may be set, for example, at the first time the shutter buttonis placed in a half pressed state, and also may be set, for example, ineach of intervals between image captures performed by continuous imagecapture (for example, a period during which no image capture is beingperformed).

In the case of the continuous image-capture mode for selecting a bestimage, when the shutter button is placed in a half pressed state, theimage-capture control calculation unit 13 detects a subject from theimages that are continuously captured by the camera unit 14, calculatesthe movement speed thereof and the variation of the relevant movementspeed when the relevant subject is moving, and can thereby dynamicallychange and control the continuous image-capture time interval and thenumber of continuously captured images during the continuous imagecapture in the shutter button half pressed state in accordance with themovement speed and a variation in the movement speed.

In order to realize these operations, the image-capture controlcalculation unit 13 of the mobile terminal of the present embodiment isconfigured to include a subject detection unit 32, a movement distancecalculation unit 33, a speed calculation unit 34, and an image-captureinterval determination unit 35. The subject detection unit 32, themovement distance calculation unit 33, the speed calculation unit 34,and the image-capture interval determination unit 35 may be configuredusing software, using hardware, and may also be configured in such amanner that software and hardware are used in combination asappropriate.

The subject detection unit 32 detects a subject from the image pickupsignal of the camera unit 14. Regarding the relevant subject detectionalgorithm, various algorithms are considered. In the present embodiment,any one of those algorithms can be used. In the case of the presentembodiment, for the subject detection algorithm, as an example, analgorithm that detects a contour (edge) of an image captured by thecamera unit 14 and that detects an image portion corresponding to thesubject in the relevant captured image on the basis of the detectedcontour information is used.

The movement distance calculation unit 33 calculates a distance that ismoved by the subject detected by the subject detection unit 32 withinthe unit time period. In the case of the present embodiment, as shown inFIG. 2, as an example, the movement distance calculation unit 33 obtainsa distance DISa from the subject to the relevant camera unit 14 on thebasis of the focal length information, obtains an angle θ formed betweenthe subject position A before movement and the subject position B aftermovement, and calculates the movement distance by an arithmeticoperation of the equation (1) below using the distance DISa and theangle θ.The movement distance from A to B=DISa·tan θ  (1)

The relevant movement distance calculation algorithm is only an example,and in the embodiment, other various movement distance calculationalgorithms can be used.

The speed calculation unit 34 obtains the movement speed of the subjectand the variation in the speed on the basis of the movement distancecalculated by the movement distance calculation unit 33. That is, thespeed calculation unit 34 calculates a speed and a variation in thespeed on the basis of the distance moved by the subject per unit timeperiod.

The image-capture interval determination unit 35 dynamically determinesthe continuous image-capture time interval and the number ofcontinuously captured images during continuous image capture in theshutter button half pressed state in accordance with the speed and thevariation in the speed, which are obtained by the speed calculation unit34. Specifically, for example, when the movement speed is high, thecontinuous image-capture time interval is determined to be a shortcontinuous image-capture time interval, and conversely, when themovement speed is low, the continuous image-capture time interval isdetermined to be a long continuous image-capture time interval. Inaddition, when the movement speed is varied, the continuousimage-capture time interval can be changed as appropriate in accordancewith the variation thereof. Furthermore, for example, when the movementspeed is high, the number of continuously captured images is increased,and when, conversely, the movement speed is low, the number ofcontinuously captured images is decreased. In addition, when themovement speed is varied, the number of continuously captured images canbe changed as appropriate in accordance with the variation thereof. Ofcourse, the number may be determined in the opposite way.

Then, the information on the continuous image-capture time interval andthe number of continuously captured images that are dynamicallydetermined by the image-capture interval determination unit 35 are sentto the driving control unit 36. The driving control unit 36 at this timecauses continuous image capture in the camera unit 14 to be performed atthe continuous image-capture time interval and at the number ofcontinuously captured images, which are dynamically determined.

That is, in the continuous image-capture mode for selecting a bestimage, the mobile terminal of the present embodiment can dynamicallychange and control the continuous image-capture time interval and thenumber of continuously captured images when the shutter button is placedin a half pressed state in accordance with the movement speed of thesubject captured by the camera unit 14 and the variation in the speed.

Furthermore, the mobile terminal of the present embodiment also includesan image analysis/selection unit 12 that can automatically select a bestor better image on which, for example, hobbies, preferences, andfeelings of the user are reflected from among, for example, a pluralityof images that are continuously captured and stored during thecontinuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image.

The image analysis/selection unit 12 is configured to include an imageanalysis unit 21, an analysis/weighting unit 22, and an image selectionunit 23.

The image analysis unit 21 includes at least two functions, namely, afunction of generating analysis information indicating features of theimage, which are preferable or favored by the user and holding theanalysis information as a table by analyzing an image, such as aphotograph, which is input in advance, and a function of similarlyanalyzing each image obtained by the continuous image capture during thecontinuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image and outputtingthe analysis result thereof to the image selection unit 23. For theimage that is input in advance to the relevant image analysis unit 21,for example, an image prestored in the storage unit 10, an image storedin the memory 8 loaded into the external memory slot 7, an imagereceived through the external input/output terminal unit 6, an imageobtained by data communication or the like through the communicationunit 1, and the like are considered.

The image analysis algorithm in the relevant image analysis unit 21 maybe any one of the various algorithms. In the case of the presentembodiment, the relevant image analysis unit 21, as an example, uses ananalysis algorithm that detects the contour (edge) of the image,detects, for example, the main part of the image on the basis of thecontour, additionally detects sub-parts accompanying the relevant mainparts, and converts each of the detected parts into a numerical value(score).

For example, as an example of the image analysis, in a case where theanalysis target image is an image of a dog, the image analysis unit 21detects each part, as shown in FIG. 3.

That is, in a case where the analysis target image is an image in whicha dog is photographed from the horizontal direction, as shown in part(A) of FIG. 3, first, the image analysis unit 21 detects the contour(edge) of the image of the relevant dog, as shown in part (B) of FIG. 3.

Next, as shown in part (C) of FIG. 3, the image analysis unit 21 detectsa face (head part) part as a main part from the detected contour byusing, for example, a dog face detection technology.

Next, as shown in part (D) of FIG. 3, the image analysis unit 21 detectsprotruding parts excluding the face part from the detected contour, anddetects the relevant detected protruding part as sub-parts accompanyingthe main part.

Then, as shown in part (E) of FIG. 3, the image analysis unit 21 detectsa part whose distance from the face part is smaller among the protrudingparts as an arm (hand, front leg) part and detects a part whose distanceis larger among the protruding parts as a leg (foot, rear leg) part.

In the example of FIG. 3, an image of a dog is given as an analysistarget image. In the image analysis unit 21 of the present embodiment,the analysis target image may be an image of various animals other thana person and a dog, and furthermore may be an image of various objectbodies, such as an automobile, an airplane, a bicycle, and anautobicycle. In a case where the analysis target image is, for example,an automobile image, analysis is possible such that the front unit, thefront wheel unit, the rear wheel unit, and the like of the relevantautomobile are used as parts, in a case where the analysis target imageis an image of an airplane, the plane nose unit, the main wing part, thetail wing unit, and the like of the relevant airplane are used as parts,and in a case where the analysis target image is an image of a bicycleor an autobicycle, the handle unit, the front wheel unit, the rear wheelunit, and the like thereof are used as parts.

Furthermore, as an example of conversion-into-numerical-value of each ofthe parts, in a case where the analysis target image is, for example,various images described above, such as an animal or a person, the imageanalysis unit 21 gives a score to each of the parts that are detected asdescribed above. In the case of the present embodiment, for the scoregiven to each part, a value corresponding to the area in which each ofthe those parts occupies in the frame of the image, or the like isconsidered.

FIG. 4 illustrates, as an example, an example of a table in which partsobtained by analyzing an image that is input in advance, and scores thatare given for each part are registered.

In the case of this example of the table of FIG. 4, an example is givenin which, regarding face parts, score 6 is given when the occupied areaof the face part is greater than or equal to 10% of the image frame,score 4 is given when it is in a range of 10% to 5%, score 2 is givenwhen it is smaller than or equal to 5%, and no score is given when thereis no face part (occupied area is 0%) in the image frame (0 score isgiven). Hereinafter, in a similar manner, an example is given in which,regarding, for example, arm parts, score 3 is given when the occupiedarea thereof is greater than or equal to 10% of the image frame, score 2is given when the occupied area thereof is in a range of 10% to 5%,score 1 is given when the occupied area thereof is less than 5%, and noscore is given when there is no arm part (occupied area: 0%).Furthermore, regarding, for example, leg parts, when the occupied areathereof is greater than or equal to 10% of the image frame, score 3 isgiven when the occupied area thereof is in a range of 10% to 5%, score 1is given when the occupied area thereof is less than 5%, and no score isgiven when there is no arm part (occupied area: 0%).

The table shown in FIG. 4 and the scores that are given to each part areonly an example, and the present invention is not limited to thisexample.

The image selection unit 23 of the image analysis/selection unit 12 is acomponent for automatically selecting an image that is considered to bepreferable or favored by the user from among a plurality of images thatare captured by the continuous image capture and stored in thecontinuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image.

The selection algorithm used when the image selection unit 23 selectsany image from among the continuously captured images may be any one ofthe various algorithms.

In the case of the present embodiment, as an example, the relevant imageselection unit 23 uses a selection algorithm that selects any image byreferring to the table on the basis of the analysis results obtained bythe image analysis unit 21 by analyzing the continuously capturedimages.

In the present embodiment, as an example, in a case where continuouslycaptured images in which a dog approaches while running during thecontinuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image are captured,and furthermore, the image that has been input in advance and analyzedis, for example, an image shown in FIG. 3 above, the image selectionunit 23 selects one image that seems to be preferable or favored by theuser from among the continuously captured images in the followingmanner.

For example, in a case where, as an image that is preferable or favoredby the user, an image such as that shown in FIG. 3 above, in which a dogis photographed from the side, has been input in advance, and the imagehas been analyzed, the relevant image of FIG. 3 is an image in which adog is photographed from the side. Consequently, a table that isobtained from the analysis result thereof is information in which scoresare given to face (head part) parts, arm (front leg) parts, and leg(rear leg) parts, correspondingly, as shown in FIG. 4 above.

Here, as an example, it is assumed that the continuously captured imagesduring the continuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image arecontinuously captured images in which a dog approaches while running asshown in FIG. 5. The image at the initial time of the image capture isan image in which the entire physical body on the substantially frontside of the dog is photographed as in (as) of FIG. 5. After that, as in(a1) and (a2) of FIG. 5, the relevant dog gradually approaches, andfinally, for example, the dog comes nearby and the dog's face occupiessubstantially the whole of the screen, as shown in (ae) of FIG. 5.

In a case where an image that is considered to be desired by the user isto be automatically selected from among such continuously capturedimages, first, the image analysis/selection unit 12 of the presentembodiment causes the image analysis unit 21 to analyze the individualimages obtained by the continuous image capture, detects each part foreach of those images, and gives a score by referring to the table withregard to each of those images. FIG. 6 illustrates an image ((a) of FIG.6) of (as) of FIG. 5, and a contour ((b) of FIG. 6) of each part, whichis obtained by analyzing the image. Furthermore, FIG. 7 illustrates animage ((a) of FIG. 7) of (ae) of FIG. 5, and a contour ((b) of FIG. 7)of each part, which is obtained by analyzing the image.

Next, when analysis of each of the images, which is performed by theimage analysis unit 21, is completed, the image selection unit 23receives the analysis information of each image from the relevant imageanalysis unit 21, and selects, for example, one image from among thecontinuously captured images on the basis of the analysis information.That is, in the case of the present embodiment, the image selection unit23 refers to the table of FIG. 4 above so as to calculate the score foreach part of the continuously captured images, and selects, for example,the image with the highest score.

A description will be given by taking examples of FIGS. 6 and 7. In thecase of the image of FIG. 6, one face part, two arm (front leg) parts,and one leg (rear leg) part are obtained as a result of the analysis.Furthermore, in the case of the image of FIG. 6, the area that one facepart occupies in the relevant image frame is in a range of 10% to 5%,the area that each of the two arm (front leg) parts occupies in therelevant image frame is each smaller than or equal to 5%, and the areathat one leg (rear leg) parts occupies in the relevant image frame issmaller than or equal to 5%. Consequently, in the image of FIG. 6, thetotal of scores of each part is obtained in accordance with thearithmetic operation of the equation (2) below. Mp in equation (2) isscore “4” of the face part when the occupied area in the image frame isin a range of 10% to 5%, Sp1 is score “1” of the arm (front leg) partwhen the occupied area in the image frame is smaller than or equal to5%, and Sp2 is score “1” of the leg (rear leg) part when the occupiedarea in the image frame is smaller than or equal to 5%.Mp×1×2+(Sp1 or Sp2)×3×2=8+12=20  (2)

On the other hand, in the case of the image of FIG. 7, only one facepart is obtained as a result of the analysis. Furthermore, in the caseof the image of FIG. 7, the area in which one face part occupies in therelevant image frame is greater than or equal to 10%. Consequently, inthe image of FIG. 7, the total of scores of each part is obtained inaccordance with the arithmetic operation of equation (3) below. Mp inequation (3) is score “6” of the face part in which the occupied area inthe image frame is greater than or equal to 10.Mp×1=6  (3)

That is, in the case of this example, on the basis of the score “20”obtained from the image of FIG. 6 and the score “6” obtained from theimage of FIG. 7, the image selection unit 23 of this example selects theimage of FIG. 6 having a larger score. The above-mentioned example isonly an example.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, for example, when each imageobtained by the continuous image capture during the continuousimage-capture mode for selecting a best image is to be analyzed, it ispossible to perform predetermined weighting when a score is to be givento a part that matches the analysis result of the image that was inputin advance.

The relevant weighting is performed, as an example, by a process foradding, multiplying, subtracting, or dividing a predetermined value to,by, from, or by each score of a basic table that is generated on thebasis of the above-mentioned image that was input in advance, or by aprocess in which a plurality of tables in which a different score isgiven to each part are separately prepared in advance, and one of thetables is selectively used from among those tables.

As a component for such weighting, the image analysis/selection unit 12of the mobile terminal of the present embodiment includes ananalysis/weighting unit 22.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a table in which weighting ofmultiplying by N times (in the example of FIG. 8, N=two times) the scoreof the basic table is performed when a part item of the basic tablebased on an image input in advance match a part item obtained byanalyzing the continuously captured image during the continuousimage-capture mode for selecting a best image. In a case where anexample of the table of FIG. 8 is used, the calculation of the scoreregarding the image of FIG. 6 is an arithmetic operation such asequation (4) below. Mp, Sp1, and Sp2 in equation (4) are identical tothose of equation (2) above.Mp+(Sp1 or Sp2)×3=8+12=20  (4)

In a case where the example of the table of FIG. 8 is used, thecalculation of the score with regard to the image of FIG. 7 is identicalto that of equation (3) above.

Also, in a case where this example of the table of FIG. 8 is used, theimage selection unit 23 selects the image of FIG. 6 having a largerscore from among the score “20” obtained from the image of FIG. 6 andthe score “6” obtained from the image of FIG. 7.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the weighting by theanalysis/weighting unit 22 may be adjusted in accordance with, forexample, the continuous image-capture time interval and the number ofcontinuously captured images that are determined at the time of thecontinuous image capture of the continuous image-capture mode forselecting a best image.

For example, in a case where the continuous image-capture time intervalis shortened because the movement speed of the subject is high,adjustments are considered in which the scores of the basic table aremultiplied by n with regard to, for example, arm (front leg) parts orleg (rear leg) parts. In this case, when, for example, a dog of asubject is running very fast, it becomes possible to select, forexample, an image in which the front legs and the rear legs that aremoving fast are clearly photographed or an image in which a jumping dogis photographed at the relevant jumping timing.

Alternatively, in a case where, for example, the movement speed of thesubject is slow and the continuous image-capture time interval isincreased, an adjustment is considered in which the scores of the basictable are multiplied by m with regard to, for example, the items of theface parts. In this case, when, for example, the dog which is thesubject is walking slowly, it becomes possible to select, in particular,an image in which the face is brought into focus and is beautifullyphotographed.

Of course, these are only examples, and the present invention is notlimited to these. Furthermore, N times, n times, and m times at the timeof the weighting may each be not only a positive number, but also anegative number or a number with a fractional part.

In addition, the table can be set in accordance with the analysis of animage that is input in advance, and may also be provided as an initialtable in advance, for example, the table can be formed in such a mannerthat the user sets each item (each part) and a score as desired.Furthermore, the table may be updated by learning the analysis resultsof images that were captured by the user in the past. In this case, itbecomes possible to select an image that better matches the preferenceor the like of the user as a result of image capture being continuedover a long period of time and learning information of each part itemand scores being stored.

[Flowcharts]

Flowcharts when the mobile terminal of the present embodiment executesimage-capture control programs of the present embodiment, which includealgorithms, such as the above-mentioned “subject detection and speeddetection processes”, “image-capture time interval setting determinationprocess”, “subject image part extraction process”, “best image selectionprocess”, and the like, will be illustrated below. In the case of thepresent disclosure, the processing of the following flowcharts isrealized by executing the image-capture control program of the presentembodiment by the image-capture control calculation unit 13 and theimage analysis/selection unit 12. In the present embodiment, as a resultof executing the relevant image-capture control program, each functionof the image-capture control calculation unit 13 and the imageanalysis/selection unit 12 is realized. The functions involved withexecution of the image-capture control programs of the presentembodiments may be realized by the control unit 2.

FIG. 9 illustrates the overall flow from when the image-capture controlprogram of the present embodiment is executed and the continuous imagecapture is performed in the continuous image-capture mode for selectinga best image until the best image is selected from among a plurality ofimages that are obtained by relevant continuous image capture and isstored by the relevant continuous image-captures.

In the flowchart shown in FIG. 9, the mobile terminal of the presentembodiment is placed in the continuous image-capture mode for selectinga best image. When the shutter button of the operation unit 3 is placedin a half pressed state, the image-capture control calculation unit 13,in a process of step S1, controls the driving control unit 36, therebycausing the camera unit 14 to perform an auto-focus operation.

When the auto-focus operation is started, in a process of step S2, thesubject detection unit 32 detects a contour (edge) in the mannerdescribed above from the captured image that has been captured by thecamera unit 14 and has been sent through the image signal processingunit 31, and detects an image portion corresponding to the subject inthe relevant captured image on the basis of the contour information. Theinformation of the subject detected by the relevant subject detectionunit 32 is passed to the movement distance calculation unit 33.Furthermore, at the same time, information on the focal length whenfocus is made by the auto-focus operation is passed to the movementdistance calculation unit 33 from the camera unit 14.

Next, in a process of step S3, the movement distance calculation unit33, as described above, calculates the movement distance of the subjecton the basis of the distance information up to the subject correspondingto the focal length and the angle formed by the subject positions beforeand after movement. Furthermore, at this time, the speed calculationunit 34 calculates the movement speed of the subject in the mannerdescribed above on the basis of the information movement distancecalculated by the movement distance calculation unit 33. Then, themovement speed information of the relevant subject is passed to theimage-capture interval determination unit 35.

Next, in a process of step S4, on the basis of the information on themovement speed, the image-capture interval determination unit 35determines the continuous image-capture time interval and the number ofcontinuously captured images at the time of continuous image capture,which is being performed in the shutter button half pressed state. Then,in a process of step S5, on the basis of the continuous image-capturetime interval and the number of continuously captured images, theimage-capture interval determination unit 35 controls the drivingcontrol unit 36 so as to perform continuous image capture at therelevant continuous image-capture time interval and furthermore performcontinuous image capture of the number of continuously captured images.

As a result, the continuous image-capture time interval and the numberof continuously captured images when the shutter button is placed in ahalf pressed state are dynamically changed in accordance with themovement speed of the subject.

Then, after that, when, for example, the shutter button is fullypressed, the image-capture control calculation unit 13, in a process ofstep S7, ends the continuous image capture, and stores each imageinformation obtained by the relevant continuous image capture in anon-volatile memory.

In a case where the shutter button is not fully pressed even when acertain time period has passed from when the shutter button was placedin a half pressed state, the image-capture control calculation unit 13temporarily resets the movement distance calculation, the movement speedcalculation, the image-capture time interval determination process, andthe like. After that, the image-capture control calculation unit 13newly performs those processes. As a result, the determination of animage-capture time interval and the like, which better match the actualmotion of the subject at the current point in time, becomes possible.

After that, in a process of step S8, the image analysis/selection unit12 performs the above-mentioned image analysis the image analysis unit21 with regard to each image that is continuously captured and storedduring the continuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image, andperforms image analysis in which the above-mentioned weighting has beenperformed using the analysis/weighting unit 22 as necessary.

Then, when the image analysis regarding all the images that werecontinuously captured is completed, the image selection unit 23automatically selects a best image desired by the user from among thosecontinuously captured images on the basis of those pieces of analysisinformation and the information of the table.

FIG. 10 illustrates a detailed flowchart of calculating the movementdistance and the movement speed in step S3 of FIG. 9.

In this flowchart of FIG. 10, first, in a process of step S11, themovement distance calculation unit 33 obtains the distance from thesubject to the camera unit 14 on the basis of the focal lengthinformation obtained from the auto-focus mechanism of the camera unit14, and also calculates the angle formed between the subject positionbefore movement and the subject position after movement in the mannerdescribed above.

Next, in a process of step S12, the movement distance calculation unit33 calculates the movement distance of the relevant subject on the basisof the distance up to the subject and the angle formed between thesubject positions before and after the movement, and passes the movementdistance to the speed calculation unit 34.

The speed calculation unit 34 obtains the movement speed of the subjecton the basis of the calculated movement distance. Then, the relevantspeed calculation unit 34 passes the information on the movement speedto the image-capture interval determination unit 35.

FIG. 11 illustrates a detailed flowchart of an image-capture intervaldetermination process in step S4 of FIG. 9.

In this flowchart of FIG. 11, in a process of step S21, theimage-capture interval determination unit 35 determines an image-capturetime interval in accordance with the arithmetic operation of equation(5) below using the movement speed information. X in equation (5)denotes a movement speed (m/s), Y denotes an image-capture timeinterval, and a denotes a predetermined coefficient. X and α describedabove are finite values.Y=X*α  (5)

That is, as a result of the arithmetic operation of this equation (5)being performed in sequence, the image-capture time interval Y becomes avalue that changes in proportion to the value of the movement speedX(m/s). In a case where, for example, the movement speed is X1(m/s), theimage-capture time interval becomes Y1, and in a case where, forexample, the movement speed becomes X2(m/s), the image-capture timeinterval changes to Y2. However, X1≠X1, and Y1≠Y1.

Next, the image-capture interval determination unit 35, in a process ofstep S22, sends the image-capture time interval Y obtained in accordancewith equation (5) above to the driving control unit 36. As a result, therelevant driving control unit 36 causes the camera unit 14 to performcontinuous image capture at the image-capture time interval.

FIG. 12 illustrates a detailed flowchart of a selection process of abest image in step S8 of FIG. 9.

In this flowchart of FIG. 12, in a process of step S31, the imageanalysis unit 21 of the image analysis/selection unit 12 analyzes eachimage that is continuously captured and stored during theabove-mentioned continuous image-capture mode for selecting a bestimage, and passes the analysis information thereof to the imageselection unit 23.

In a process of step S32, the image selection unit 23 selects a bestimage that seems to be preferable or favored by the user on the basis ofthe analysis information and the above-mentioned information of thetable. The best image selected by the relevant image selection unit 23is, for example, displayed on a display screen or is separately storedin accordance with instructions from the user.

FIG. 13 illustrates a detailed flowchart of an analysis process of animage that is input in advance.

In this flowchart of FIG. 13, in a process of step S41, when, forexample, an image, such as a photograph, which is selected by the userhimself/herself, is input, the image analysis unit 21, in a process ofstep S42, analyzes the relevant input image in the same manner as thatdescribed above.

Then, in a process of step S43, the image analysis/selection unit 12,for example, registers the analysis information in a table or reflectsthe analysis information in the existing table, and also stores theanalysis information in, for example, a non-volatile memory of thestorage unit 10.

FIG. 14 illustrates a detailed flowchart of the image analysis processesperformed in step S31 shown in FIG. 12 and in step S41 shown in FIG. 13.In the case of step S31 shown in FIG. 12, the below described analysistarget image is each image that is continuously captured and stored inthe continuous image-capture mode for selecting a best image. In thecase of step S41 shown in FIG. 13, the below described analysis targetimage is, for example, an image that is input in advance.

In this flowchart of FIG. 14, in a process of step S51, the imageanalysis unit 21 detects, for example, the contour (edge) of theanalysis target image as described above, thereby extracting the mainparts, sub-parts, and the like.

Next, in a process of step S52, the image analysis unit 21 obtains anarea in which each of the parts occupies in the image frame. Then,scores are given in accordance with the percentage of each of theoccupied areas, and those scores are made to be analysis information.

FIG. 15 illustrates a detailed flowchart of a part extraction process instep S51 of FIG. 14.

In this flowchart of FIG. 15, in a process of step S61, the imageanalysis unit 21 detects, as an example, the contour of the analysistarget image, detects a face part that is detected by using a facedetection technology such as that described above as a main part on thebasis of the contour information, and additionally extracts protrudingparts other than the relevant main part as sub-parts.

Next, in a process of step S62, the image analysis unit 21 calculates arelative distance from the main part to each subpart.

Then, in a process of step S63, the image analysis unit 21 determinesthe sub-part closer to face part that is the main part as, for example,an arm (hand, front leg) part and the sub-part more far away therefromas, for example, a leg (foot, rear leg) part.

[Summary]

According to an image capturing apparatus embodiment, the embodimentincludes an image capturing device that captures an image of a subjectaccording to a mode of operation, the mode of operation beinguser-selectable between at least one of a normal image capture mode ofoperation and a continuous image capture mode of operation;

an image-capture control device that controls an image-capturingoperation performed by the image capturing device in accordance with aselected mode of operation; and

a speed detection device that detects a movement speed of the subjectduring the image-capturing operation, wherein

when the image-capturing device is operating in the continuous imagecapture mode of operation, the image-capture control device controls animage-capture time interval in accordance with the movement speed of thesubject.

According to one aspect

the speed detection device calculates an angle between the subjectbefore movement and the subject after movement, and calculates themovement speed based on a movement distance of the subject.

According to another aspect

the image-capture control device determines an image-capture timeinterval using the movement speed.

According to another aspect

the image-capture control device calculates the image-capture timeinterval as a product of the movement speed and a predeterminedcoefficient.

According to another aspect that apparatus further includes

an image analysis device that performs an analysis of a plurality ofcaptured images that are captured in the continuous image capture mode;and

an image selection device that selects an image as a best image from thecaptured images by comparing the captured images with the analysis andstored information.

According to another aspect

the analysis performed by the image analysis device includes extractingparts of an analysis target image in the captured images, and determineswhether the analysis target image includes a main part or a sub-part inan analysis frame.

According to another aspect

when the analysis target image is determined to include the main-part orsub-part, the image analysis device identifies a portion of the mainpart or sub-part that is within the analysis frame.

According to another aspect

the image analysis device is configured to detect an edge of theanalysis target image to identify a presence of the main part and afirst sub-part and a second sub-part of the analysis target image, andcalculate a distance from the main part to the first sub-part and adistance from the main part to the second sub-part, and select

-   -   the first sub-part when the distance from the main part to the        first sub-part is less than the distance from the main part to        the second sub-part, and    -   the second sub-part when the distance from the main part to the        first sub-part is greater than the distance from the main part        to the second sub-part.

According to a method embodiment the method includes

capturing an image of an image capturing device of a subject accordingto a mode of operation, the mode of operation being user-selectablebetween at least one of a normal image capture mode of operation and acontinuous image capture mode of operation;

controlling an image-capturing operation performed by the imagecapturing device in accordance with a selected mode of operation; and

detecting with a speed detection device a movement speed of the subjectduring the capturing, wherein

when the capturing is performed in the continuous image capture mode ofoperation, the controlling controls an image-capture time interval inaccordance with the movement speed of the subject.

According to one aspect of the embodiment,

the detecting includes calculating an angle between the subject beforemovement and the subject after movement, and calculating the movementspeed based on a movement distance of the subject.

According to another aspect, the method further includes

determining an image-capture time interval using the movement speed.

According to another aspect

the determining includes calculating the image-capture time interval asa product of the movement speed and a predetermined coefficient.

According to another aspect, the method further includes

performing an analysis of a plurality of captured images that arecaptured in the continuous image capture mode; and

selecting an image as a best image from the captured images by comparingthe captured images with the analysis and stored information.

According to another aspect

the performing includes extracting parts of an analysis target image inthe captured images, and determining whether the analysis target imageincludes a main part or a sub-part in an analysis frame.

According to another aspect

when the performing determines that the analysis target image includesthe main-part or sub-part, the performing determines a portion of themain part or sub-part that is within the analysis frame.

According to another aspect

the performing includes detecting an edge of the analysis target imageto identify a presence of the main part and a first sub-part and asecond sub-part of the analysis target image, and includes calculating adistance from the main part to the first sub-part and a distance fromthe main part to the second sub-part, and selects

-   -   the first sub-part when the distance from the main part to the        first sub-part is less than the distance from the main part to        the second sub-part, and    -   the second sub-part when the distance from the main part to the        first sub-part is greater than the distance from the main part        to the second sub-part.

According to a non-transitory computer readable storage deviceembodiment, the storage device contains instructions that when executedby a processing circuit performs a method, the method includes

capturing an image of an image capturing device of a subject accordingto a mode of operation, the mode of operation being user-selectablebetween at least one of a normal image capture mode of operation and acontinuous image capture mode of operation;

controlling an image-capturing operation performed by the imagecapturing device in accordance with a selected mode of operation; and

detecting with a speed detection device a movement speed of the subjectduring the capturing, wherein

when the capturing is performed in the continuous image capture mode ofoperation, the controlling controls an image-capture time interval inaccordance with the movement speed of the subject.

According to another aspect

the detecting includes calculating an angle between the subject beforemovement and the subject after movement, and calculating the movementspeed based on a movement distance of the subject.

According to another aspect, the method further includes

determining an image-capture time interval using the movement speed.

According to another aspect

the determining includes calculating the image-capture time interval asa product of the movement speed and a predetermined coefficient.

As has been described above, the mobile terminal having a camerafunction according to the embodiment of the present disclosure detectsthe movement speed of a subject in a case where, for example, a subjectthat is moving at a high speed is to be continuously captured, and thuscan dynamically control the image-capture time interval, the number ofcontinuously captured images, and the like at the time of continuousimage capture on the basis of the movement speed. Consequently, it ispossible for the mobile terminal of the present embodiment to deal witheven a case in which, for example, a subject is moving, and possible tocapture satisfactory images.

Furthermore, the mobile terminal of the present embodiment can extractmain parts of the relevant subject and sub-parts thereof as necessary byanalyzing a subject, and can select a best or better image for the useron the basis of the information on each of those parts. Consequently, itbecomes possible to deal with not only a case in which, for example, aperson is used as a subject, but also a case in which various othersubjects, such as animals or object bodies, are to be photographed. Inaddition, it is possible to select many different kinds of capturedimages that are seemed to be preferable by the user.

In addition, in the mobile terminal of the present embodiment, since theimage-capture time interval that is dynamically controlled at the timeof the continuous image capture and the selection of the relevantcontinuously captured image are mutually associated with each other, itis possible to select an image that better matches the purpose of thecontinuous image capture and the intent of the user.

The mobile terminal of the present embodiment, as long as it has acamera function of capable of continuous image capture similar to thatdescribed above, can be applied to, for example, a highly functionalmobile phone terminal, a tablet terminal, or a slate PC, as well as to,for example, a mobile terminal, such as a so-called PDA (PersonalDigital Assistant), a notebook personal computer, a portable gamemachine, or a portable navigation terminal. In addition, the mobileterminal of the present embodiment can also be applied to variousstationary electronic devices.

Furthermore, the description of the above-mentioned embodiment is anexample of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention isnot limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various changes arepossible in accordance with design and the like within a range notdeviating from the technical concept according to the present invention.

In addition, it should be understood, of course, by those skilled in theart that various modifications, combinations, and other embodiments maybe made according to the design or other elements insofar as they comewithin the scope of the claims of the present invention, or theequivalence thereof.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

1 . . . communication unit, 2 . . . control unit, 3 . . . operationunit, 4 . . . display unit, 5 . . . audio input/output unit, 6 . . .external memory slot, 8 . . . external memory, 10 . . . storage unit,image analysis/selection unit, 13 . . . image-capture control arithmeticoperation unit, 14 . . . camera unit, 15 . . . light-emitting unit, 21 .. . image analysis unit, 22 . . . analysis/weighting unit, 23 . . .image selection unit, 31 . . . image pickup signal processing unit, 32 .. . subject detection unit, 33 . . . movement distance calculation unit,34 . . . speed calculation unit, 35 . . . image-capture intervaldetermination unit, 36 . . . driving control unit

The invention claimed is:
 1. An image capturing apparatus comprising: animage capturing device that captures an image of a subject according toa mode of operation, said mode of operation being user-selectablebetween at least one of a normal image capture mode of operation and acontinuous image capture mode of operation; an image-capture controldevice that controls an image-capturing operation performed by the imagecapturing device in accordance with a selected mode of operation,wherein the image-capture control device calculates an image-capturetime interval as a product of a movement speed of the subject and apredetermined coefficient; a speed detection device that detects amovement speed of the subject during the image-capturing operation,wherein when the image-capturing device is operating in the continuousimage capture mode of operation, the image-capture control devicecontrols the image-capture time interval in accordance with the movementspeed of the subject; and an image analysis device that determineswhether the analysis target image includes a main part or a sub part ina frame and a percentage area of the frame occupied by the main part orsub part.
 2. The image capturing apparatus of claim 1, wherein saidspeed detection device calculates an angle between the subject beforemovement and the subject after movement, and calculates the movementspeed based on a movement distance of the subject.
 3. The imagecapturing apparatus of claim 2, wherein: the image-capture controldevice determines an image-capture time interval using the movementspeed.
 4. The image capturing apparatus of claim 1, wherein: the imageanalysis device that performs an analysis of a plurality of capturedimages that are captured in the continuous image capture mode; andfurther comprising an image selection device that selects an image as abest image from the captured images by comparing the captured imageswith the analysis and stored information.
 5. The image capturingapparatus of claim 4, wherein the analysis performed by the imageanalysis device includes extracting parts of an analysis target image inthe captured images, and determines whether the analysis target imageincludes the main part or the sub-part in an analysis frame.
 6. Theimage capturing apparatus of claim 5, wherein when the analysis targetimage is determined to include the main-part or sub-part, the imageanalysis device identifies a portion of the main part or sub-part thatis within the analysis frame.
 7. The image capturing apparatus of claim5, wherein the image analysis device is configured to detect an edge ofthe analysis target image to identify a presence of the main part and afirst sub-part and a second sub-part of the analysis target image, andcalculate a distance from the main part to the first sub-part and adistance from the main part to the second sub-part, and select the firstsub-part when the distance from the main part to the first sub-part isless than the distance from the main part to the second sub-part, andthe second sub-part when the distance from the main part to the firstsub-part is greater than the distance from the main part to the secondsub-part.
 8. An image capturing method comprising: capturing an image ofan image capturing device of a subject according to a mode of operation,said mode of operation being user-selectable between at least one of anormal image capture mode of operation and a continuous image capturemode of operation; controlling an image-capturing operation performed bythe image capturing device in accordance with a selected mode ofoperation, including calculating an image-capture time interval as aproduct of a movement speed of the subject and a predeterminedcoefficient; and detecting with a speed detection device a movementspeed of the subject during the capturing, wherein when the capturing isperformed in the continuous image capture mode of operation, thecontrolling controls an image-capture time interval in accordance withthe movement speed of the subject, and determining whether an analysistarget image includes a main part or a sub part in a frame and apercentage area of the frame occupied by the main art or the sub part.9. The image capturing method of claim 8, wherein said detectingincludes calculating an angle between the subject before movement andthe subject after movement, and calculating the movement speed based ona movement distance of the subject.
 10. The method of claim 9, furthercomprising: determining an image-capture time interval using themovement speed.
 11. The method of claim 8, further comprising:performing an analysis of a plurality of captured images that arecaptured in the continuous image capture mode; and selecting an image asa best image from the captured images by comparing the captured imageswith the analysis and stored information.
 12. The method of claim 11,wherein the performing includes extracting parts of an analysis targetimage in the captured images, and determining whether the analysistarget image includes the main part or the sub-part in an analysisframe.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein when the performingdetermines that the analysis target image includes the main-part orsub-part, the performing determines a portion of the main part orsub-part that is within the analysis frame.
 14. The method of claim 12,wherein the performing includes detecting an edge of the analysis targetimage to identify a presence of the main part and a first sub-part and asecond sub-part of the analysis target image, and includes calculating adistance from the main part to the first sub-part and a distance fromthe main part to the second sub-part, and selects the first sub-partwhen the distance from the main part to the first sub-part is less thanthe distance from the main part to the second sub-part, and the secondsub-part when the distance from the main part to the first sub-part isgreater than the distance from the main part to the second sub-part. 15.A non-transitory computer readable storage device that containsinstructions that when executed by a processing circuit performs amethod, the method comprising: capturing an image of an image capturingdevice of a subject according to a mode of operation, said mode ofoperation being user-selectable between at least one of a normal imagecapture mode of operation and a continuous image capture mode ofoperation; controlling an image-capturing operation performed by theimage capturing device in accordance with a selected mode of operation,including calculating an image-capture time interval as a product of amovement speed of the subject and a predetermined coefficient; anddetecting with a speed detection device a movement speed of the subjectduring the capturing, wherein when the capturing is performed in thecontinuous image capture mode of operation, the controlling controls animage-capture time interval in accordance with the movement speed of thesubject, and determining whether an analysis target image includes amain part or a sub part in a frame and a percentage area of the frameoccupied by the main part or the sub part.
 16. The storage device ofclaim 15, wherein said detecting includes calculating an angle betweenthe subject before movement and the subject after movement, andcalculating the movement speed based on a movement distance of thesubject.
 17. The storage device of claim 16, wherein the method furthercomprising: determining an image-capture time interval using themovement speed.